ObjectiveTo develop a nomogram-based risk prediction model for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) incidence among the community-dwelling population aged 40 years old and above, so as to provide targeted references for the screening and prevention of COPD. MethodsBased on a natural population cohort in suburban Shanghai, a total of 3 381 randomly selected participants aged ≥40 years underwent pulmonary function tests between July and October 2021. Cox stepwise regression analysis was used to develop overall and gender-specific risk prediction models, along with the construction of corresponding risk nomograms. Model predictive performance was evaluated using the C-indice, area under the curve (AUC) values, and Brier score. Stability was assessed through 10-fold cross-validation and sensitivity analysis. ResultsA total of 3 019 participants were included, with a median follow-up duration of 4.6 years. The COPD incidence density was 17.22 per 1 000 person-years, significantly higher in males (32.04/1 000 person-years) than that in females (7.38/1 000 person-years) (P<0.001). The overall risk prediction model included the variables such as gender, age, education level, BMI, smoking, passive smoking, and respiratory comorbidities. The male-specific model incorporated the variables such as age, BMI, respiratory comorbidities, and smoking, while the female-specific model included age, marital status, respiratory comorbidities, and pulmonary tuberculosis history. The C-indices for the overall, male-specific, and female-specific models were 0.829, 0.749, and 0.807, respectively. The 5-year AUC values were 0.785, 0.658, and 0.811, with Brier scores of 0.103, 0.176, and 0.059, respectively. Both 10-fold cross-validated C-indices and sensitivity analysis (excluding participants with a follow-up duration of <6 months) yielded C-indices were above 0.740. ConclusionThis study developed concise and practical overall and gender-specific COPD risk prediction models and corresponding nomograms. The models demonstrated robust performance in predicting COPD incidence, providing a valuable reference for identifying high-risk populations and formulating targeted screening and personalized management strategies.

Objective:To explore the clinical characteristics, treatment methods, and prognosis of refractory pharyngeal ulcers. Methods:A retrospective analysis was conducted on the clinical manifestations, laryngoscopic features, laboratory tests, histopathological examinations, and treatments of 78 patients diagnosed with refractory pharyngeal ulcers. Results:There was no significant difference in the proportion of males-to-females in benign lesions, while males were significantly more prevalent in cases of malignant lesions. Seven distinct pathological types of pharyngeal ulcers were identified, with the most common being simple inflammatory ulcers（18 cases）, followed by tuberculosis（16 cases）, fungi（15 cases）, lymphoma（14 cases）, squamous cell carcinoma（10 cases）, Behcet's disease（3 cases）, and myelosarcoma（2 cases）. Conclusion:The clinical manifestations and lesions associated with refractory pharyngeal ulcers are diverse. A clear diagnosis should be established based on a systematic and comprehensive medical history, specialized examinations, and additional tests to avoid misdiagnosis and mistreatment. Laryngoscopy and histopathological examinations are essential for identifying the type of lesion and guiding appropriate treatment.
Humans ; Male ; Female ; Retrospective Studies ; Middle Aged ; Adult ; Aged ; Pharyngeal Diseases/pathology* ; Young Adult ; Ulcer/pathology* ; Adolescent ; Aged, 80 and over

Although enteric glial cell (EGC) abnormal activation is reported to be involved in the pathogenesis of Parkinson's disease (PD), and inhibition of EGC gliosis alleviated gut and dopaminergic neuronal dysfunction was verified in our previous study, the potential role of gut microbiota on EGC function in PD still need to be addressed. In the present study, fecal microbiota transplantation revealed that EGC function was regulated by gut microbiota. By employing 16S rRNA and metabolomic analysis, we identified that 3-indolepropionic acid (IPA) was the most affected differential microbial metabolite that regulated EGC gliosis. The protective effects of IPA on PD were validated in rotenone-stimulated EGCs and rotenone (30 mg/kg i.g. for 4 weeks)-induced PD mice, as indicated by decreased inflammation, improved intestinal and brain barrier as well as dopaminergic neuronal function. Mechanistic study showed that IPA targeted pregnane X receptor (PXR) in EGCs, and inhibition of IL-13Rα1 involved cytokine-cytokine receptor interaction pathway, leading to inactivation of downstream JAK1-STAT6 pathway. Our data not only provided evidence that EGC gliosis was critical in spreading intestinal damage to brain, but also highlighted the potential role of microbial metabolite IPA in alleviating PD pathological damages through gut-brain axis.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1016/j.apsb.2025.02.029.].

Objective : To construct a human keratinocyte-forming cell line(HaCaT) with stable knockout of the G protein-coupled receptor 107(GPR107) gene, and to preliminarily investigate the effect of GPR107 deletion on the biological behaviour of HaCaT cells. Methods : Using CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing technology, HaCaT cells with knockout ofGPR107gene were constructed and monoclonal cells with GPR107 deletion were obtained by limited dilution method. Genomic DNA was amplified using Western blot and PCR and sequenced to validate the single-cell clones with knockdown of GPR107. The cell cycle changes were detected by flow cytometry; cell proliferation was detected by CCK-8; apoptosis was detected by flow cytometry; changes in cell differentiation markers were detected by Western blot; cell migration ability was analyzed by cell scratch assay and other methods. Results : LentiCas9-Blast and plenti-guide-RNA-GPR107 plasmids were successfully transfected into HaCaT cells, 21 monoclonal cell lines were obtained by limited dilution, and Western blot showed that the GPR107 expression was significantly reduced in 8 of them; PCR sequencing of the cellular genome was used, which resulted in the obtainment of C4 and 2D8GPR107-/-HaCaT monoclonal cell lines. CCK-8 assay and flow cytometry assay showed thatGPR107gene deletion resulted in G0G1phase block, significantly weakened proliferation ability and increased apoptosis level of HaCaT cells. Western blot found that the differentiation of HaCaT cells accelerated after knockdown ofGPR107. Additionally the results of the cell scratch assay indicated that the migration ability of HaCaT cells was enhanced after knockdown ofGPR107. The results showed that the migration ability of HaCaT cells was enhanced after knockdown ofGPR107. Conclusion HaCaT cell line withGPR107gene deletion is successfully constructed, GPR107 deletion blocks the G0G1phase of HaCaT cells, which inhibiting the proliferation of HaCaT cells and promoted apoptosis, and it was found that the differentiation and migration of HaCaT cells were enhanced after knocking downGPR107.

Objective:To investigate the incidence of postoperative complications in Chinese patients with gastric or colorectal cancer, and to evaluate the risk factors for postoperative complications.Methods:This was a national, multicenter, prospective, registry-based, cohort study of data obtained from the database of the Prevalence of Abdominal Complications After Gastro- enterological Surgery (PACAGE) study sponsored by the China Gastrointestinal Cancer Surgical Union. The PACAGE database prospectively collected general demographic characteristics, protocols for perioperative treatment, and variables associated with postoperative complications in patients treated for gastric or colorectal cancer in 20 medical centers from December 2018 to December 2020. The patients were grouped according to the presence or absence of postoperative complications. Postoperative complications were categorized and graded in accordance with the expert consensus on postoperative complications in gastrointestinal oncology surgery and Clavien-Dindo grading criteria. The incidence of postoperative complications of different grades are presented as bar charts. Independent risk factors for occurrence of postoperative complications were identified by multifactorial unconditional logistic regression.Results:The study cohort comprised 3926 patients with gastric or colorectal cancer, 657 (16.7%) of whom had a total of 876 postoperative complications. Serious complications (Grade III and above) occurred in 4.0% of patients (156/3926). The rate of Grade V complications was 0.2% (7/3926). The cohort included 2271 patients with gastric cancer with a postoperative complication rate of 18.1% (412/2271) and serious complication rate of 4.7% (106/2271); and 1655 with colorectal cancer, with a postoperative complication rate of 14.8% (245/1655) and serious complication rate of 3.0% (50/1655). The incidences of anastomotic leakage in patients with gastric and colorectal cancer were 3.3% (74/2271) and 3.4% (56/1655), respectively. Abdominal infection was the most frequently occurring complication, accounting for 28.7% (164/572) and 39.5% (120/304) of postoperative complications in patients with gastric and colorectal cancer, respectively. The most frequently occurring grade of postoperative complication was Grade II, accounting for 65.4% (374/572) and 56.6% (172/304) of complications in patients with gastric and colorectal cancers, respectively. Multifactorial analysis identified (1) the following independent risk factors for postoperative complications in patients in the gastric cancer group: preoperative comorbidities (OR=2.54, 95%CI: 1.51-4.28, P<0.001), neoadjuvant therapy (OR=1.42, 95%CI:1.06-1.89, P=0.020), high American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) scores (ASA score 2 points:OR=1.60, 95% CI: 1.23-2.07, P<0.001, ASA score ≥3 points:OR=0.43, 95% CI: 0.25-0.73, P=0.002), operative time >180 minutes (OR=1.81, 95% CI: 1.42-2.31, P<0.001), intraoperative bleeding >50 mL (OR=1.29,95%CI: 1.01-1.63, P=0.038), and distal gastrectomy compared with total gastrectomy (OR=0.65,95%CI: 0.51-0.83, P<0.001); and (2) the following independent risk factors for postoperative complications in patients in the colorectal cancer group: female (OR=0.60, 95%CI: 0.44-0.80, P<0.001), preoperative comorbidities (OR=2.73, 95%CI: 1.25-5.99, P=0.030), neoadjuvant therapy (OR=1.83, 95%CI:1.23-2.72, P=0.008), laparoscopic surgery (OR=0.47, 95%CI: 0.30-0.72, P=0.022), and abdominoperineal resection compared with low anterior resection (OR=2.74, 95%CI: 1.71-4.41, P<0.001). Conclusion:Postoperative complications associated with various types of infection were the most frequent complications in patients with gastric or colorectal cancer. Although the risk factors for postoperative complications differed between patients with gastric cancer and those with colorectal cancer, the presence of preoperative comorbidities, administration of neoadjuvant therapy, and extent of surgical resection, were the commonest factors associated with postoperative complications in patients of both categories.

Objective:To investigate the diagnostic features of pulmonary sclerosing pneumocytoma (PSP) in needle biopsy specimens so as to improve the preoperative diagnostic accuracy and to prevent misdiagnoses.Methods:A total of 79 needle biopsy cases confirmed as PSP in surgical resection specimens were collected in the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, China from January 2015 to January 2023. A retrospective analysis was conducted to investigate the clinical, pathological, and immunohistochemical characteristics of PSP.Results:Among the 79 cases, there were 8 males and 71 females, with an age range of 14 to 67 years (median 47 years). Among the 79 needle biopsy cases of PSP, 5 cases were initially misdiagnosed as adenocarcinoma and 1 as carcinoid preoperatively, while the remaining 73 cases were correctly diagnosed. 84.8% (67/79) of the PSP presented with well-defined, homogeneous, solitary solid tumors on chest imaging. Morphologically, 26.6% (21/79) of the PSP mainly showed a single histological component, 67.1% (53/79) contained two histological components, and 6.3% (5/79) contained three histological components. There were no cases containing all four histological components simultaneously. The tumor was composed of cuboidal cells on the surface and round cells in the stroma and lacked significant cytological atypia and mitotic figures. Some cases exhibited variations in histology and cellular morphology, such as glandular spaces (58.2%, 46/79), sclerotic papillae (46.8%, 37/79), hypercellularity (16.5%, 13/79), and cytological atypia (24.1%, 19/79). Immunophenotyping indicated that both tumor cell types expressed TTF1, EMA and β-catenin, while surface cells expressed pan-cytokeratin and Napsin A, and stromal cells expressed vimentin. In some cases, ER and PR were also expressed.Conclusions:When diagnosing PSP in needle biopsy specimens, the key to avoiding misdiagnosis is recognizing the presence of dual-cell populations within the tumor. The useful clues include presence of cellular papillae, mild cellular atypia, morphological diversity, interstitial foam-like cell aggregates, and prominent background hemorrhage and sclerosis. The characteristic immunophenotype and middle-aged female predilection are also helpful for the diagnosis of PSP.

Objective To investigate the associations of reproductive health indicators with lung function and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease(COPD)among women aged 40 years and above.Methods From Jul to Sep,2021,female subjects aged 40 years and above were randomly selected from the Shanghai Suburban Adult Cohort and Biobank for COPD screening.A questionnaire was used to obtain information on demographic characteristics and reproductive health indicators.Linear regression was used to analyze the effects of reproductive health indicators on forced vital capacity(FVC)and forced expiratory volume in the first second(FEV1).Logistic regression was also used to analyze the effects of reproductive health factors on FVC as a percentage of the predicted value(FVC%Pred)and FEV1%Pred as well as on COPD.Results A total of 1876 women aged 40 years and above were enrolled with mean age of(62.1±8.2)years old,among them,78.1%were menopausal,and 40.9%had been pregnant≥3 times.Multivariate analysis showed that FVC and FEV1 decreased in postmenopausal women,but menopause was not associated with a decrease in their percentage of predicted values.Pregnancies≥3 times was a risk factor for COPD(for 3 times,OR=4.92,95%CI:1.48-19.95,P<0.05;for≥4 times,OR=9.06,95%CI:2.32-41.57,P<0.01),while pregnancies of 2 times did not increase the risk of COPD.Conclusion In women aged 40 years and above,menopause is associated with poorer FVC and FEV1,and excessive pregnancy(≥3 times)is a risk factor for COPD.

Objective To observe the level of serum Meteorin-like protein(Metrnl)in patients with type 2diabetes mellitus(T2DM)complicated with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease(NAFLD).To explore the predictive value of serum Metrnl for the occur-rence of NAFLD in T2DM patients.Methods From January 2022 to June 2023,218 patients with T2DM were initially diagnosed in the Affiliated Xuzhou Municipal Hospital of Xuzhou Medical University(Xuzhou First People's Hospital).According to whether NAFLD was combined,they were divided into T2DM group(n=105)and T2DM combined with NAFLD group(n=113).The general information,related biochemical and metabolic indicators of the two groups of patients were collected,and the serum Metrnl levels of the two groups were detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay(ELISA).Results Homeostasis model assessment insulin resistance index(HO-MA-IR),glycosylated hemoglobin(HbA1c)and triglyceride(TG)in T2DM combined with NAFLD group were higher than those in T2DM group,while high-density lipoprotein cholesterol(HDL-C)and Metrnl were lower than those in T2DM group,and the differ-ences were statistically significant(P＜0.05).Logistic regression results showed that body mass index(BMI)and TG were risk factors for T2DM with NAFLD(OR＞1,P＜0.05),HDL-C and Metrnl were protective factors for T2DM with NAFLD(OR＜1,P＜0.05).Spearman correlation analysis showed that Metrnl was negatively correlated with TG,HbA1c,HOMA-IR and BMI in initially diagnosed T2DM patients(r＜0,P＜0.05),and positively correlated with HDL-C(r＞0,P＜0.05).Receiver operating characteristic(ROC)curve analysis show that,the area under the curve(AUC)of BMI,TG,HDL-C and Metrnl predicting T2DM combined with NAFLD was 0.719,0.701,0.736 and 0.771.The AUC of Metrnl was largest.Conclusion The serum Metrnl levels in initially diagnosed T2DM combined with NAFLD patients are lower than those in simple T2DM patients,and serum Metrnl levels has good predictive power for the presence of NAFLD in initially diagnosed T2DM patients.

Objective:To analyze the level and clinical significance of IL-18 and IL-18-binding protein (BP) in the bone marrow of patients with myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) .Methods:A total of 43 newly diagnosed patients with MDS who were admitted to the Department of Hematology, Tianjin Medical University General Hospital, from July 2020 to February 2021 were randomly selected. The control group consisted of 14 patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) and 25 patients with iron-deficiency anemia (IDA). The levels of IL-18 and IL-18 BP in the bone marrow supernatant were measured, and their correlations with MDS severity, as well as the functionality of CD8 + T cells and natural killer cells, was analyzed. Results:The levels of IL-18, IL-18 BP, and free IL-18 (fIL-18) in the bone marrow supernatant of patients with MDS were higher than in the IDA group. The level of fIL-18 was linearly and negatively correlated with the MDS-International Prognostic Scoring System (IPSS) score. IL-18 receptor (IL-18Rα) expression on CD8 + T cells in the MDS group was lower than in the IDA group, and the levels of fIL-18 and IL-18Rα were positively correlated with CD8 + T-cell function in the MDS group. Conclusion:IL-18 BP antagonizes IL-18, leading to a decrease in fIL-18 in the bone marrow microenvironment of patients with MDS, affecting CD8 + T-cell function, which is closely related to MDS severity; therefore, it may become a new target for MDS treatment.